Introducing Margaret Skowronski 
Born in Bialystok, Poland I graduated from the Warsaw Agricultural University with a Masters of Science Degree in Food Technology and Human Nutrition. In 1977, after working for several years as a Lecturer and Research Assistant at the Medical Academy in Warsaw, I decided to leave Poland. I settled in Sydney and completed a Postgraduate Diploma in Nutrition and Dietetics at Sydney University. Subsequently I worked for some years as a Dietitian.
Having been passionate about visual arts, music, and literature since my early years, I studied Fine Arts while working in Australia. My exploration of the world of 2D included the use of simple line, colour, ink and texture. In 3D, I modelled in clay and wax, casting in various materials, carving and welding.
Above all, I am aiming for simplicity and honesty in my use of the medium.
Tasmania, where I arrived in 1999, inspired my quest in Abstraction. I continued my studies in Fine Arts at the University of Tasmania.
Abstraction has been the centre of my creative search ever since. For me, this search is an ongoing conversation about the universe and the mystery of existence. This enables me to take the risk of reaching for the unknown, and to express with humility my faith in that unknown….
My exploration of Abstraction helps me to gradually uncover what strikes, moves and fascinates me. I have always believed in what Piet Mondrian said: “Abstraction has emphasised the old truth that art must be universal, just as true reality is”.
I have travelled extensively in Australia, Europe, Asia, North & South America, the Middle East, North Africa and the Pacific Islands, where I have learned about distant cultures, their art, architecture and often-amazing natural environments. All of this has influenced my art practice.
Curriculum Vitae
Artistic qualifications and experiences.
2019 - 2020
- Travelling in South America
2017 - 2018
- Travelling in Greece and in Vanuatu
2015 - 2016
- Travelling in Poland and Lithuania
2013 - 2014
- Travelling in China and in Europe
- The winner of the Oil Painting category in the 2014 Kingborough Art Prize and Exhibition
- Article in Sunday Tasmanian 10.11.2013
2010 - 2012
- Chinese Brush Paintings with Eva Effenberger, Tasmania
- Travelling in Europe, Middle East, Mexico, Guatemala
2006 - 2009
- Mentored in abstract painting by Anton Holzner
- Travelling in Japan
2003 - 2005
- Life Drawing sketch clubs, Hobart,
- Wood carving, modelling, casting, painting and drawing at the own studio, Blackmans Bay, Tasmania
- Completed one year of the Diploma in Art Craft & Design – Wood Design, TAFE Hobart
2000 - 2002
- Drawing and painting classes with Bunty Houston ,Hobart
- Wood carving with Dennis Muscovich, Glen Huon, Tasmania
- Completed a year of the Bachelor of Fine Arts, University of Tasmania
1998 - 1999
- Wood carving workshop with Boris Gaspar, Sydney
- Sculpture classes at the Tom Bass Sculpture Studio School, Sydney
- Traveling in USA and Europe
1995 - 1997
- Oxy Acetylene welding course, TAFE Sydney
- Sculpture classes with Ian Shaw, Shaw Sculptor’s Studio, Sydney
1992 - 1994
- Life drawing classes and sketch clubs, Julian Ashton Art School, Sydney
- Life drawing classes and sketch clubs, Paddington Art School, Sydney
- Drawing and painting classes with Joseph Jabour, Sydney
Exhibitions
2022 - 2023
- Solo Exhibition - "Ink In Motion", Sidespace Gallery, Salamanca Arts Centre, Hobart
2020 - 2021
- Solo exhibition - "Evoking Tasmania - A Quest in Abstraction" - Art Lounge, West Winds Community Centre, Tasmania
- Solo exhibition - "Illuminations: Margaret Skowronski's Tasmania", Sidespace Gallery, Salamanca Arts Centre, Hobart
2018 - 2019
- Solo exhibition - Abstracts and Contemplation, Sidespace Gallery, Salamanca Arts Centre, Hobart
- Reaching Out - Exhibition in West Winds Community Centre, Woodbridge, Tasmania
2015 - 2016
- 2016 Kingborough Art Prize and Exhibition, Tasmania
- Solo exhibition, "Margaret Starzyńska-Skowronski ... from distant Tasmania", SCEK Gallery Abakus, Warsaw, Poland
(Download brochure)
2013 – 2014
- Solo art exhibition, The Village, Triabunna, Tasmania
- 2014 Kingborough Art Prize and Exhibition, Tasmania
2009 – 2011
- Solo Exhibition - Beneath the Southern Cross - Goulburn Street Gallery, Hobart
- 10th Anniversary Past and Present Members of Inka Gallery, The Long Gallery, Hobart
2003 – 2007
- Art with a Bite – Kingston Uniting Church Adult Fellowship, Kingston
- The Pol Art Abode Exhibition - The Bond Store, Tasmanian Museum & Art Gallery,Hobart
- Exhibition – CAST Gallery, Hobart
- Exhibition of Students of the Diploma in Art Craft & Design, Hobart
2001 - 2002
- Members Exhibition – CAST Gallery, Hobart
- Biannual Art Exhibition – The Multicultural Council of Tasmania, Moonah Arts Centre
- The Christmas Exhibition – Inka Gallery Members, Hobart
- Up the Garden Path – Royal Tasmanian Botanical Gardens, Hobart
- Peace Works – The Long Gallery, Hobart
1994 - 1998
- Sculpture at the Source, Shaw Sculpture Studio, Sydney
- The Year in Review, ARDT Gallery, Sydney
- Six Stories, ARDT Gallery, Sydney
- Celebration of the Nude, Paddington Art School Exhibition
Collections
- The Museum of Nicolaus Copernicus University, Toruń, Poland
- The Archives of Emigration - Nicolaus Copernicus University, Toruń, Poland
- Private Collections in Australia, China, Canada, Poland and France